Mudavadi demands suspension of his PS
In a letter to Mr Muthaura dated February 19, 2010, Mr Mudavadi (above) questioned why the head of civil service had not taken action against the indicted officers. Photo/ FILE
Deputy Prime Minister Musalia Mudavadi is bitter with Head of Civil Service Francis Muthaura for allegedly ignoring his recommendation to suspend his permanent secretary.
Mr Mudavadi wants Local Government permanent secretary Sammy Kirui suspended over his alleged role in a scandal in which the Nairobi City Council lost Sh259 million. The scandal was exposed in the Controller and Auditor General’s report in February.
Mr Kirui on Monday joined the fray, insisting the issue had been politicised, with rival factions in ODM using it to step up their supremacy wars.
The PS said “spindoctors had been hired to divert attention from real issues like fighting graft. “The report is clear and has not accused anybody. All the auditor general told me was to recover the lost funds,” he said.
In a letter to Mr Muthaura dated February 19, 2010, a copy of which the Nation obtained, Mr Mudavadi questioned why the head of civil service had not taken action against the indicted officers.
“You will recall that I expressed concern that the audit report appeared to indict certain officers in this ministry and at City Hall with respect to non-compliance with procurement requirements,” Mr Mudavadi wrote.
The report, he says, recommends that appropriate measures be taken by his office to recover the Sh259 million. “My interest is to see that action is taken in line with the recommendations,” he adds.
“In the circumstances, I request you to cause pre-emptory measures to be undertaken to fulfil the recommendations.”
The Auditor General’s report named Mr Kirui, former town clerk John Gakuo and former deputy town clerk Nelson Otido as the most culpable.
Parallel probe
City Hall lost Sh259 million after the price of a 120-acre property in Mavoko was inflated to Sh283 million, 10 times more than a government valuation of Sh24 million.
Mr Henry Musyoki Kilonzi, the registered land owner, who signed the sale agreement, is said to have received Sh107.5 million while the rest of the money was “disbursed to other parties”. The parliamentary committee on local authorities that conducted a parallel investigation is expected to release its report on Wednesday.
